Chapter 49: Chapter 49: Thanks For Not Killing Me

Nikola didn't have the modern memories associated with pinch zooming in order to wish for such a thing, but that was the general idea of what she wished for as she sifted through all her memories; too fast, too frenetic, too full of bodies covering up what she needed to see.

They passed by quickly, each one a jab to her brain as she flicked through, her mind's eye zooming in on the glowing red etchings.

The symbol she drew looked remarkably similar to the one she used for her 'Crunch' skill, except there were two sliced across the 'bone' instead of one, and they were at the top instead of in the middle.

Fishing for the memory took a split second in 'real time', but it was long enough for the situation unfolding before her to worsen. The lion wound its mighty paw up and swiped in Luke's direction.

He bounced skillfully out of the way, the wind causing his bangs to flutter as the chunky claws scraped the air an inch in front of him.

But now that the creature had no set target, it whipped its three cord-like tails out in Phoenix's direction as it turned around, one catching him in the leg and forcing him to one knee, a deep clang coming from the armour over his shin as it connected.

Luke took that moment to use one of the new skills from his level-up. Both he and Phoenix were enveloped in a glowing film. Protective, perhaps?

Their HP bars couldn't be far from empty. The boss, with its HP at about **one fourth**, was growing desperate. It was already steadying its footing for another swipe.

"If I perish here, I beg of you; go find my guild leader and tell him what happened. He knows of my will, and Gold's."

"You're not going to die," Luke replied through clenched teeth.

While the two males were keeping the lion busy, Nikola was using the tip of her cleaver to perform the ritual of slicing the symbol into the space in front of her. She tore a line like a wound into the air as the archer was struck, and another as Luke responded to his plea.

But the ritual needed to be finished up close. The Butcher approached the predator with her weapon out in front of her, suspending the partially-finished image there. The lion sensed her footsteps but was struck straight in one of its eyes by a keenly opportunistic arrow from Phoenix that pierced through the back of its eyeball. It screeched and pawed at the socket the bolt had invaded, pushing it further in and thrashing in response.

Nikola had wanted to mount the feline to finish her skill, but the bucking made that plan more difficult, so she settled for a carefully timed series of slices into the fleshy joint between its upper arm and forearm, completing her [Sever] skill with a swipe of her wrist.

The bottom half of the creature's leg was severed from its body, thumping to the ground in a gushing, juicy puddle. The bats in the air were horrified and screamed as they flew away, scurrying back up into the darkness and tucking themselves away against the dark ceiling.

"I'm sorry," Nikola muttered softly to the bats.

If the lion had been alarmed by something being in its eye, the lack of its front arm rendered it savagely panicked. It waved its leg around, splattering red across the floor and flopping into a somersault in confusion, driving the arrow into its own skull and emptying its own HP bar in one last crunch against the marble.

"God damn," Luke breathed after a silence, watching the blood pool soak into the boss's mane, "you finished it off. Have I told you yet that I'm so fucking glad you trapped me in your basement?" He flashed her a stunned grin.

Phoenix looked between the two of them incredulously. "You trapped him in your basement?"

"I did," Nikola replied matter-of-factly.

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A whistling noise made her muscles tense, a streak of light gliding up through the air and popping once it got near the tower ceiling, exploding in a flash of glittering pink. Fireworks?

A banner unfurled from above, fluttering down into the smear on the wall that used to be Katalyn and Gold.

CONGRATULATIONS, it read in squiggly, playful letters, you are the survivors of this season's very first dungeon!

Another firework whistled into the room and exploded, and another, filling the room with lights and noises.

Two bleeps went off within her mind, reminiscent of the alert noises the red box had played earlier. Had she leveled up again, or were the rewards from this expedition waiting for her in the party loot screen?

A vague feeling of accomplishment filled her, tarnished by the guilt from being unable to protect Katalyn or Gold. She wondered if the archer resented her, but when she looked into his eyes all she saw were tears.

"Your friend seemed like a good man," she offered hollowly. She had little idea if he was a 'good man', considering they had only known each other for a few hours. But she didn't want to not say anything on the matter, so that was what she came up with. Was one not supposed to say kind things in death?

"He is-- was-- oh, I'm going to have to get used to that." He wiped away the wetness clouding his vision. "Everyone in our party strives to be 'good', as much as is possible in a Killing Game. We do not wish to go back into the world carrying immense guilt over all the atrocities we committed. We want to deserve our place out there, among the Lavish, when we win. Many people think it's paradoxical to be trying to be good people in a place like this, but to each his own. This is our path."

"No, I think it's noble," Luke said with a nod, "I didn't put the 'knight' in my username for nothing."

After a pause, he added, "I'm sorry about Giga, man. I tried to get in there, but there wasn't time--"

"Do not apologize," Phoenix interrupted, "you have no reason to. We knew the risks when we entered and we may have perished much sooner without your intervention. This is a killing game and you did nothing to stab us in the back. Let us instead focus on that."

At the suggestion, Nikola's eyes trailed over Phoenix's built form. His glittering, expensive armour was dented where the lion's tail had thumped into it, and his breathing was laboured from exertion. He had to be inches from death himself, and he would explode into both coins for them and coins for Luke's mother if she brought his health bar to zero - but he had defended them when they had crossed the dungeon pillars, and it would be a terrible waste of an ally. Still, as she found herself landing on the side of 'do not kill', she realized how very many times she had decided not to murder somebody lately. Was she becoming soft?

Phoenix tilted his head at the prolonged stare from the rogue. "Are you checking me out? Because while I would indeed say yes normally, I must say I--"

"She was deciding whether or not she wanted to kill you," Luke interjected, loosening his grip on his sword, "and I think you passed, man."

"Ah. Well, my thanks for not killing me, I suppose."

"You're welcome," Nikola grumbled begrudgingly.

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It's almost October! That means it's almost SPOOKY MONTH. Time to break out the bats and pumpkins. 8D Also, since it's a new month, here's my obligatory plug: if you're finding this story entertaining, please consider supporting it on .

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